Inside Unmanned Systems

APR-MAY 2018

Inside Unmanned Systems provides actionable business intelligence to decision-makers and influencers operating within the global UAS community. Features include analysis of key technologies, policy/regulatory developments and new product design.

Contents of this Issue

Navigation

Page 65 of 67

Q+A
66 April/May 2018 unmanned systems
inside
Q G F
Q:
Are drone detection and mitigation
capabilities likely to be deployed
simultaneously?
a:
You can certainly do detection without
mitigation. You can't really do mitigation
without detection because obviously you need
to know what it is that you would be taking
action against. ...I will say that mitigation as
a concept is actually prohibited under Title
18 Section 32, which prohibits anyone from
disrupting, sabotaging or attacking an aircraft.
And because UAS are aircraft, sort of by
definition, all mitigation capabilities are legally
prohibited unless you have that relief from
Title 18—and currently only the Department
of Defense and the Department of Energy have
that authority. …There is an administration
counter-UAS legislative proposal that has been
As deputy associate administrator for
security and hazardous materials safety
at the Federal Aviation Administration,
ANGELA STUBBLEFIELD is a leading
expert on UAS security and policy issues.
Q:
How will the need for remote identifi cation of unmanned aircraft
systems (UAS) impact the implementation of drone detection?
a:
So remote ID doesn't have to come first but remote ID definitely
provides information that will be useful for and complementary
to detection systems. Right now the state of the art of detection
systems is you can find the UAS, and depending on the system, you can
potentially find the location of the controller. …Remote ID, on the other
hand, is envisioned to provide information about the operator and the
nature of the operation.
informally introduced to Congress, and various
committees are reviewing that to determine
if other agencies and departments like DHS
(Department of Homeland Security) and
Department of Justice, for example, should
have the same sort of relief.
Q:
What kind of oversight of drone
detention and mitigation will be needed?
a:
Congress is being understandably and
rightfully judicious in how it enables this
authority or grants this authority. …In both the
NDAA (National Defense Authorization Act)
language as well as the legislative proposal…
there are specific requirements and limitations
around the collection of information associated
with these activities that prescribe the length
of time that information may be retained, what
may be done with that information and how it
needs to be protected. …In addition, there's a
proposed sunset clause that would terminate
the authorities in the legislative proposal after
five years unless reauthorized by Congress.
Q:
It sounds like there are concerns
about the IDs of the drones.
a:
It's more around the fact that the vast
majority of UAS are controlled by a
cell phone or an iPad. …And obviously we
all use our cell phones and tablets for a lot
of things. So the intent's to make sure that
the information that's collected is only the
information relevant to that UAS operating,
not inadvertently picking up part of a phone
conversation or an email or a text.
Q:
How will the FAA prioritize approving
airspace restrictions, detection and
counter drone systems?
a:
We're going to do it based on risk. So
prioritizing the work that we do with
our interagency partners based on those
locations and operations to which UAS pose
the highest risk—and address those first.
Five Good Questions
ANGELA STUBBLEFIELD